Paranoia spreads: Twenty-nine percent of voters say armed rebellion might come in next few years

Americans, especially the less educated, are becoming increasingly wacky, as we see HERE:

Three in 10 registered American voters believe an armed rebellion might be necessary in the next few years, according to the results of a staggering poll released Wednesday by Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind.

The survey, aimed at measuring public attitudes toward gun issues, found that 29 percent of Americans agree with the statement, “In the next few years, an armed revolution might be necessary in order to protect our liberties.” An additional five percent were unsure.

Eighteen percent of Democrats said an armed revolt “might be necessary,” as compared to 27 percent of independents and 44 percent of Republicans. Support levels were similar among males and females but higher among less educated voters.

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22 Comments

I wish they had been asked what the armed rebellion was going to accomplish specifically? ‘Protecting ones liberties’ is a fairly broad statement.

At the center of this whole fiasco is the tea party. Had they not preyed on the fears of the ignorant and ramped up anti-government sentiment among rednecks and bible thumpers this wouldn’t be happening.

It is ironic that the tea drinkers think they are patriots but are in fact the exact opposite. Tehy claim to love America but try so hard to destroy it. They claim a deep belief in Christianity but won’t lift a finger to help those in need. Very un-Jesus like if you ask me.

Today must be a day for the wackos to come out. In another poll that TPM highlighted, most liberals are power thirsty and want complete unchecked control of government, while half of Republicans would like to see a balanced form of government control. Sounds to me like its the Republicans who are more reasonable.

“most liberals are power thirsty and want complete unchecked control of government…”

You mean like when the cons had complete unchecked control of government during Reagan’s admin or during GWB’s admin? Like that? Maybe they want a government that actually does something other than gridlock. I don’t care for the method, but we’ve had that before.

The regressives don’t sound so reasonable to me, but to the memory-challenged I suppose they do.

Neftali: You’re reading way too much into that poll on one-party rule.

You say “most liberals are power thirsty and want complete unchecked control of government…”

That is utter nonsense. There has never been unchecked control of government, and there never will be. Courts can overturn legislation that goes too far. The Senate minority still has filibuster power, and the Republicans have been using it at a record rate. Nor are Democrats in Congress always unanimous.

As we’ve seen in the past four years, Republicans in Congress will oppose almost anything Obama proposes, even if the vast majority of Americans favor it. We saw that with the legislation on background checks. This current crop of Republicans is the most obstructive gang since segregationist Southern Democrats were able to block almost any civil rights bill.

What the poll at issue shows is that many Americans are fed up with the pettiness of such politics.

There are other polls you’re ignoring, Neftali — the ones that show the Republican brand to be in greater disfavor than ever before.

I’m surprised this kind of sentiment wasn’t talked about more during the GWB reign when many, especially in Europe were seeing similarities in his administration to that of Hitler’s early years, especially when the Patriot Act and all the other Executive Orders intruding on personal freedoms were being implemented. Many saw the Patriot Act and those orders that followed as comparable to The Enabling Act in 1930’s Germany and saw 911 as comparable to events leading up to the Reichstag fire. It’s no surprise now that some on the right are now realizing just how much government is watching our every move both electronically and visually. 1984 is here and most people would not disagree.

Where was the right here in America when all those things they are so upset about now were being put in place under a Republican president?
What I do find inconsistent is these same people on the right will be just fine with these intrusions into our privacy and loss of anonymous behavior, when a Republican president is once again in place. The ever increasing police state we are witnessing, began in a very blatant way under GWB, but Obama has been just as aggressive in keeping them in place and adding to their effectiveness. It’s not going away regardless of who is in power.

Just wait until all and everything we do is within the grid. Just wait till our whole life is an open book on the grid and our lives depend on that grid ok’ing our daily accessing of it. Just wait till some joker who has access to our electronic identity decides to deny access to it for fun or because the govt deems you a threat. I was talking with a young person recently, a cashier at a well known national coffee house. We were talking about the electronic wallets that people will pay for their purchases with by flashing your Ipad or cellphone screen in front of a reader of such equipment. I said what happens if your identity gets turned off and you can’t pay for anything or that system goes down? She said there’s a sci-fi type movie about such things and she herself said it was quite scary how much we are using electronics for legitimizing our daily lives. I notice that on the bus when I see so many people playing with their phones and not communicating the old fashioned way, with our mouths and eye contact. I still don’t have a smart phone but I notice how much I miss my access to the internet, so I’m impacted too but not as much as many, especially the younger folks who see it as a way of life.

Craig – Reagan had to work with a Democratic-controlled House, so it was hardly unchecked. Further, aside from the deficit spending, I think the first 6 years of the GWB admin went pretty well.

Pat – Don’t kid yourself. When most people answer that question that they want single party rule, they don’t want a filibuster or courts working in favor of the opposition. Further, as you well know, once you have control over Congress and the White House, its just a matter of time before you can get the courts to work in your favor. And the simple fact is that there is more power-hungry people on the left than there is on the right. This poll is very synonymous with the liberal cry of today that “evil Republicans won’t let us do whatever we want.”

S****w Godwin… its just a way of cutting off a conversation, just like calling someone a racists is when the conversation about racial issues hits home or becomes uncomfortably true..

The GWB administration sure concerned the heck out of Putin, enough so he never really left his govt position. People in Europe are much more savvy than many here in America.

If history never repeats itself, why are so many on the right ready to take up arms against the government? When did that happen in our history. Oops, some a – whole named Godwin said you can’t make analogies.. does it really matter what the analogy being used as a comparison is, hah Godwin, isn’t the point of your theory to stop the conversationn no matter how applicable? damn right it is…

No Robert., you are wrong as usual. The idea is to keep the sanity. Even today we see people compare Obama to Hitler, or Bush to Hitler, and 99.999% of the time the comparison is ridiculous. When you resort to try and compare your political opponent to one of the worst people in history, you’ve lost the argument because chances are, you’re wrong. Its a good law that everyone should follow.

When actions occur that are reminiscent of another period in history, they should be noted. What Bush and Cheney launched was damn scary, especially when they attacked a country that had absolutely nothing to do with 911 and it was quite evident they were using 911 to begin a venture that was well planned for in advance, the PNAC. I’ll never believe the official story of 911. And no amounts of chides or taunts will change my mind, well maybe waterboarding but only to get them to stop. Interesting how waterboarding was torture in WW2 and now its just enhanced interrogation. Talk about learning from the past comparisons… But I digress.

Did Bush become Hitler, no he didn’t, but for a while it sure looked like we were heading in that direction and the events I used as comparisons and with America going on what looked like the beginning of a world domination tour, beginning with the Middle East. Obama has done nothing but continue on in Bush’s footsteps, but I doubt those people who called Obama, Hitler, had anything to use to make that analogy except to get back at the people who thought that way towards Bush. The old I know you are but what am grade school stuff.

It’s all water under the bridge now, but I don’t think for a moment that history isn’t capable of repeating itself only usually with more success than the last time because the leaders of such movements have history to show what they did wrong. During the Viet Nam war, the media became the reason that war was ended when they lost Cronkite, now the media acts as an enabler because much of the media is owned by companies that profit from war, like GE.

I think I’ve shown enough times with my post I call a spade a spade and don’t care which side of the political spectrum it comes from.

Where’s it written that a man with the aims and goals of Hitler will never happen again? History and its review for comparisons is there to ensure we see it coming before it gets to what Hitler was able to acheive . I’ll drop the subject matter here…

Neftali, Just like I don’t believe the official story that started the Viet Nam war…That Gulf of Tonkin incident that didn’t quite happen like we were told… you know, the one that even Mcnamara said was a lie too…. you and your type are the suckers… and of course, the Birther movement has no merit. Does that mean that all seekers of truths are on the wrong side…. Hell No.. just to fools like you and others that deny sometimes factions within goverments lie to accomplish a greater agenda….